restaurant

Excited about Eating by Ernie & Dora Hiers

/ Dora Hiers / 9 Comments

This edition of Excited about Eating takes us to a century old building that was once the maintenance station of Tweetsie Railroad in Boone, NC, and now houses Café Portofino. This casual restaurant offers a wide variety of sandwiches, pastas, and steaks.

Cafe Portofino Fiction Faith & Foodies Ernie & Dora Hiers

Parking in front, but also a bigger lot on the side with FREE parking!

Dora here. I must confess I was a bit apprehensive about trying this place since it’s practically right across the street from Appalachian State. I expected it to be a student bar/hangout. And, since we entered the establishment from the parking lot on the side, that was precisely my first impression of the narrow, dimly-lit room. But that’s the wrong door. The front door’s on the other side. lol. The restaurant portion is actually quite spacious.

Cafe Portofino Fiction Faith & Foodies Ernie & Dora Hiers

It’s actually quite spacious on the inside if you enter from the correct door. lol (Sorry for the fuzzy picture!)

But who wants to sit inside with such glorious weather? And–bonus!–the outdoor patio is dog friendly! There’s an adorable Corgi puppy hanging out under the table next to us. 

Cafe Portofino Fiction Faith & Foodie Ernie & Dora Hiers

Bonus, the outdoor patio is DOG friendly!

For my lunch, I chose the Portofino Spaghetti, a meat sauce made with ground beef, Italian sausage and garlic served over spaghetti, served with a side salad and a roll sprinkled with parmesan. Their Greek feta salad dressing was outstanding, and the spaghetti cooked flawlessly. The yeast roll was hardy, perfect for dipping up the meaty, thick, garlicky sauce, and I appreciated the spoon they brought for the pasta without me asking.

Cafe Portofino Fiction Faith & Foodies Ernie & Dora Hiers

Portofino Spaghetti, meaty and thick

Dora here. The server was friendly, efficient, and knowledgeable and helpful with suggestions. The Grown Up Mac & Cheese was a notch above typical pub food. Penne pasta, grilled chicken and broccoli blanketed with a cream sauce, and then sprinkled with another layer of cheese. Although I enjoyed this dish and all the components, I would’ve preferred less sauce. Overall, though, a pleasant surprise and one I would order again with a special request of less sauce.

Cafe Portofino Fiction Faith & Foodies Ernie & Dora Hiers

Grown Up Mac & Cheese, a pleasant surprise. Next time, though, I will order it with less sauce.

What about you? What was the last meal/restaurant that exceeded your expectations?

We rate this restaurant 4 forks out of 5 for a family friendly restaurant serving great food.

Cafe Portofino & Tap Room Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Excited about Eating by Ernie & Dora Hiers

/ Dora Hiers / 11 Comments

This edition of Excited about Eating takes us to a “Southern-inspired” comfort food restaurant, The Flying Biscuit Cafe. Located in the Park Road area of Charlotte, this popular meeting spot features breakfast all day plus salads, sandwiches, and plate meals.

the Flying Biscuit Cafe Fiction Faith & Foodies Ernie & Dora Hiers

After the crowd outside a couple weeks ago, we strategically timed our visit.

Dora here. Unlike last week’s choice, I knew The Flying Biscuit Cafe would be a great experience. A couple weeks ago, we stopped here, but the crowd outside and the corresponding long wait deterred us. This week we strategically timed our visit, hoping to fall sometime after the breakfast crowd and before lunch. And, also unlike last week, our server seemed to really love her job. She was knowledgeable, helpful with suggestions, and stopped by our table several times to check on us and refill our drinks, always with a smile even though they were obviously super busy. Don’t let the skinny exterior deceive you. This cafe goes a long ways back with another outdoor patio in the rear.

The Flying Biscuit Cafe Fiction Faith & Foodies Ernie & Dora Hiers

Bustling on a Saturday around 11 AM. This cafe is bigger than it looks from the outside.

For a starter, we ordered a side of Grilled Macaroni and Cheese that Yelpers rave about. This mac and cheese is nothing like I have ever tasted. Rectangle blocks of mac and cheese grilled to perfection, somewhat crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. Dora here. This alone was worth the drive. Fluffy, light, you don’t really even taste the pasta. The texture comes off more like a souffle. HEAVENLY!

The Flying Biscuit Cafe Fiction Faith & Foodies Ernie & Dora Hiers

This alone was worth the drive. A side of Grilled Mac & Cheese. Heavenly!

For my lunch (breakfast), I chose the Egg-Stravaganza. Two poached eggs, chicken sausage, turkey bacon, grits and whole wheat French toast topped with raspberry sauce and a honey cream. This dish was outstanding, eggs cooked to the exact time and consistency, grits were creamy and cheesy. 

The Flying Biscuit Cafe Fiction Faith & Foodies Ernie & Dora Hiers

Egg-Stravaganza, outstanding!

The French toast wasn’t overly egg-y or thick, almost tasted like pumpernickel bread, so I was surprised to find out it was actually wheat bread. Whatever the type, the sauce and cream were a great accompaniment.

The Flying Biscuit Cafe Fiction Faith & Foodies Ernie & Dora Hiers

French Toast, not overly egg-y or thick. And the sauce and cream a great accompaniment.

Dora here. Y’all, check out the Very Berry Chicken Wrap. Doesn’t it look refreshing? It was!! Great texture from the candied walnuts, fresh flavors, light on the raspberry vinaigrette, loaded with chunky chicken, delish! The perfect choice for a hot summer afternoon, I would definitely order this again. Maybe not the Garlic and Basil Mashed Potatoes because I prefer my taters a bit creamier.

The Flying Biscuit Cafe Fiction Faith & Foodies Ernie & Dora Hiers

Very Berry Chicken Wrap…light, fresh, delish! Side of Garlic Basil Mashed Potatoes.

What about you? How do you prefer your French Toast? Or not a fan at all?

We rate this restaurant 5 forks out of 5 for a family friendly restaurant serving outstanding food.

The Flying Biscuit Cafe Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Excited about Eating by Ernie & Dora Hiers

/ Dora Hiers / 3 Comments

When hubby and I first started food blogging, we decided that we would not review a restaurant that fell below a three fork rating. In just over two years, we’ve only experienced three fails. Today is one of those places where we knew from the minute we walked in the door that it wouldn’t be a good experience. The server was grumpy, stone-faced, and rude. A man’s voice could be heard yelling from the back of the restaurant practically the entire time we were eating. Awkward! And, worse, the food was mediocre.

Ernie here: This is kind of role reversal today with Dora taking the lead. The food at the no name restaurant was somewhere between terrible and uneatable. NOTE to self, make sure you check out the reviews before eating at a new restaurant.

So…for today’s edition of Excited about Eating we’re switching gears and reviewing our favorite coffee shop in Boone, Higher Grounds Coffee Shoppe.

Higher Grounds Coffee Shoppe Fiction Faith & Foodies Ernie & Dora Hiers

Tucked in the corner of New Market Shopping Center

Tucked in the corner of New Market Shopping Center, Higher Grounds is easy to get to and plenty of parking, although you might not snag a close spot especially when Capone’s Pizza finally opens. (CANNOT wait for Capone’s to move in here!!)

Ernie: Now we are talking about a great place to eat! Capone’s is the BEST pizza in Boone.

We’ve been coming to Higher Grounds for years, so we knew we couldn’t go wrong reviewing here. lol. Ample seating. Eclectic and comfortable. Relatively quiet. And always awesome coffee and service.

Ernie: Not sure I would use the term “for years”, but for sure the last couple of years.

Higher Grounds Coffee Shoppe Fiction Faith & Foodies Ernie & Dora Hiers

Eclectic. Homey. Comfortable. Awesome.

I have tried a few different coffees and liked all of them, but my favorite beverage is the Iced Chai Latte. And, miracle of miracles, they are the only place I know that carries it in DECAF, people! Maybe they just tell me it’s decaf, but it works for me. lol. See all those dark crystals on the bottom of the cup? Yummies, and they are heavenly! Warm at first, but then the ice kicks in, and the perfect strength. It’s probably loaded with sugar, but I don’t care.

Ernie: I chose the same this time and it was equally good.

We rate this coffee shop 5 forks (spoons) out of 5 for a family friendly place serving outstanding coffee.

Higher Grounds Coffee Shoppe Fiction Faith & Foodies Ernie & Dora Hiers

See all those crystals at the bottom? Heavenly yummies! Best Iced Chai Latte ever! And decaf!

What about you? What’s your favorite coffee or tea? Do you have a go-to coffee shop?

Higher Grounds Coffee Shoppe Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato